Istanbul Doner Kebap

Istanbul offers red meat and chicken kebaps and falafel, all of which are good. But for those uninterested in kebaps or falafel, there are also dishes you can by (in combinations if you’d like). The dishes change daily and are things like the requisite chick peas, okra stewed with tomato and onion, and eggplant and veal. Kebaps are notorious around Florence for a quick lunch or late night snack, but it's nice to have these alternative fork-or-spoon options too.

Via Dei Benci
Florence, Italy 50122

Trattoria Tirovino Three-dux

For my third visit to Tirovino, I opted for new flavors once again. A bottle of white wine went nicely with the meal, but they generously gave me both aperitif and digestif. The aperitif was prosecco, and the digestif was grappa. (Usually I think grappa is Italian for “gasoline,” but this was actually excellent.) For my primo piatto, I opted for Maccheroni dell’ Aia (macaroni with liver, peas, and fresh tomato). I’m not a big fan of liver, but I wouldn’t guess this was liver. It was so good. The flavor was perfectly enhanced, just like their tripe. If you like deep-fried, get a secundo of Fritto dell’ Aia. It’s a fried platter of chicken and rabbit, eggplant, onion rings, and zucchini. What more can I say? Awesome. Want a unique and decadent dolce? Coffee mousse topped with powdered sugar, whipped cream, and roasted split coffee beans. It was a welcome change from the regular chocolate mousse.

Via Ghibellina, 70 Rosso
Firenze, Italia 50122
055.2638940
http://www.tirovino.com

a special Grom visit

So a group of us went with one of the Apicius chefs to Grom, and the owner gave us a special lesson in gelato-making. He made stracciatella (cream ice cream with dark chocolate shavings) from scratch for us, and believe me, the soft-serve version is easily the best ice cream I’ve ever had. Sadly, soft-serve gelato is not available because it goes from creation into the flash-freezer for commercial sale. But seriously. It was amazing. After that, he offered us a few scoops from the regular stock. I asked him for his favorite flavor: Toroncino. (Known as “nougat” in English.) He paired it with café (coffee, duh). Amazing.

Via del Campanile
angolo via delle Oche
Florence, Italy, 50122
Tel. 055.216158
http://www.grom.it

Kettners Restaurant & Champagne Bar

Kettner’s is a champagne supernova. It’s an upscale yet laidback restaurant. They make Italian-style pizza with international ingredients. I opted for a "Padana" pizza with caramelized red onion, goat cheese, chicken, spinach, and garlic oil. Light but flavorful. I approved entirely.

They also carry meat dishes, salads, appetizers, and of course desserts. But the real highlight of Kettner’s is their champagne selection. Whether you opt for the excellence of Ayala or the Winston-Churchill-acclaimed Pol Roger, make sure to pack a couple hundred pounds for the entirely-authentic from-Champagne-France selection. You won’t regret it.

29 Romilly Street
Soho, London, W1D 5HP
England, United Kingdom
Tel: 020.7734.6112
Fax: 020.7287.6499
http://www.kettners.com

Masala Zone

Masala Zone’s motto is “real Indian food at unreal prices.” True story. They say London is the best place to get Indian food. Also a true story. This is largely due to the fact that it has the biggest Indian population outside of India and, for the most part, better, fresher ingredients than India. Masala Zone offers a rich selection of Indian food a la carte and for more voracious appetites, thalis. (Thali: Platter.) These include your curry of choice, the vegetables du jour, the daal (lentils or beans) du jour, green sauce, chutney, and rice or naan. I opted for the lamb kolhapuri, which is lamb stewed with the flavors of black cardamom, pepper, and star anise. It’s not too spicy but has a nice heat and a nice kick to it. The vegetables were curried in coconut milk, and the daal was creamy but not heavy. Both would have been great even on their own. And I got rice but a special order of garlic naan on the side. For dessert, I got kulfi – Indian ice cream. The waitress recommended the caramel flavor. And so it was. And it was delicious.

Covent garden: 48 floral st, London, WC2
England, United Kingdom
020 7379 0101
http://www.realindianfood.com

Nando's

Nando’s is the brainchild of two owners. One is Portuguese, and one is South African. The flavors reflect both those colors. When I first walked in, it smelled great. And that’s always a good sign. Their specialty is PERi-PERi roast chicken, but when you place your order, you dictate how spicy you’d like it. Chad and I compromised with “medium spicy” since I’m a heat freak and he’s not so much. The chicken is fresh ("never frozen!") British bird that is marinated for 24 hours. It comes with a side of your choice, and we opted for “spicy rice,” which wasn’t so spicy but was very tasty. Both the chicken and the rice were excellent. Nando's also offers bottles of sauces, spicy or otherwise, to help you customize the flavors to your liking.

Dear Nando’s, please start a branch or ten in the United States. Love, Andrew

10 Frith Street
Soho, W1D 3JF
London, England, United Kingdom
http://www.nandos.co.uk

Pontefract Castle

Another round of British pub food coming right up. Most people know what the famous fish and chips are (fried filet of fish and French fries) and bangers and mash (sausages and mashed potatoes) are. But most people don’t know my favorite pub dish: Toad in the hole. I’m not quite sure why it’s named that because it’s something probably everyone would eat.

At Pontefract Castle, I ordered a “toad in the hole.” Pontefract is one of those places that lets you choose the sausage you want in it. (Toad in the hole is Yorkshire pudding surrounding sausages, mashed potatoes, green veggies, and onion gravy.) I got a venison-juniper-and-gin sausage that had a hint of sweetness and paired rather nicely with my pint of liquid bread Guinness. I don’t know what else to say. Toad in the hole is one of those dishes where all the ingredients are so good, it’s hard to imagine the combination not being good.

71 Wigmore Street, W1U 1QB
London, England, United Kingdom